About US

Building the future

Small business ownership fuels our economy. Every single day, new ideas come to life, bringing new opportunities, jobs, products and services to our global marketplace. In fact, did you know that women open new businesses at a staggering rate of 5 to 1 compared to their male counterparts?

While startup programs and support systems for new business owners abound, there is very little help available for entrepreneurs who have moved past the beginner phase. These business owners find themselves with moderate success but seemingly stuck, unable to move on to that higher level of achievement and long-term profitability.

People would often ask the questions “What do you have for established women business owners? How do women business owners navigate the leap to that next level? How can we get unstuck?”

After hearing these question asked numerous times, and searching ourselves for training sessions or programs that went beyond how to start a business, we realized that there was a significant void in the business education arena.

We fill that void with our NextStep ‘MBA’, a research-based curriculum providing meaningful business acceleration for women striving to scale.

Fearless Leaders

Our focus is to guide women who are striving to scale their businesses so they can continue to enjoy professional success. The women who are working to cross that million dollar mark are an inspiration and some of the most impressive people we know.

Zee and Francine are the co-owners of AccelerateHER®, a women’s business development firm focused on equipping and empowering women business owners with the knowledge and tools they need to achieve monumental success as confident, capable CEOs. AccelerateHER’s NextStep ‘MBA’, formerly called The JunipHER Project, recently received the coveted Growth Accelerator Fund Competition Award by the Small Business Administration for the second year in a row.

Zee Worstell

CEO

Zee Worstell radiates passion for helping women business owners confidently charge what they’re worth, setting them firmly on the path to long-term profitability and success. She started AccelerateHER® in 2011 to focus on driving attention to the importance that pricing plays in the success and scalability of women-owned businesses. Zee published her first book “Earn What You’re Worth: A Good Girl’s Guide to Asking for More” in 2012. A captivating speaker and educator, Zee blends her expertise and background in business to electrify audiences with real-world tips designed to shift their mindset and refocus their strategies and planning to immediately earn more as confident business owners. Zee is a graduate of Pennsylvania State University.

Francine Spinelli

COO

Francine Spinelli joined AccelerateHER® as a partner after a long, diverse professional history in business and government. Her background includes recent work as the Director of Finance for an up and coming software start-up, where she facilitated multi-million dollar growth and achievement. As a military wife and mother, she intimately understands the challenges that women business owners face and is fiercely committed to helping women embrace the true value of their contributions to our global economy. Francine has earned degrees from both the University at Albany and Harvard University.